ev.news Briefly: UK Record, Jeep, PHEV Lies & more | 04 Sep 2026
Sep 04, 03:06 PM
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➤ BEVS BECOME UKS LEADING POWER SOURCE DESPITE INDUSTRY PUSHBACK
➤ STELLANTIS SETS NOVEMBER JEEP, MID-APRIL RAM PRODUCTION
➤ PHEVS EMIT 4.6 TIMES OFFICIAL CO₂ VALUES
➤ FORD AIMS FOR 100,000 FATHOM SALES
➤ BEVS OUTSELL PETROL AND DIESEL IN AUSTRALIA
➤ BATTERY TRUCKS PROJECTED TO BEAT DIESEL COSTS
➤ MAN PARTNERS PLAN AROUND €400M FOR EUROPEAN SERVICE SITES
➤ WAYVE AND UBER OFFER LONDON AUTONOMOUS RIDES
➤ BARCELONA OFFERS FOUR MILLION EUROS ELECTRIC BIKE SUBSIDIES
➤ XIAOMI SIGNS EIGHT GERMAN DEALER ARRANGEMENTS
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BEVS BECOME UKS LEADING POWER SOURCE DESPITE INDUSTRY PUSHBACK
Battery electric vehicles took 30% of the UK car market in August, up from 23% a year earlier, making BEVs the largest single powertrain category ahead of hybrids at 29%, petrol at 22% and PHEVs at 14%, with plug-ins combined reaching 44%. The performance is comfortably ahead of the effective 24.6% target New AutoMotive calculates for this year, yet the government has opened a consultation on relaxing its EV rules under carmaker pressure — a move that could backfire, given Chinese manufacturers now hold 28% of Europe's PHEV segment, up 60% year on year, with PHEVs making up 60% of BYD's European registrations.
Battery electric vehicles took 30% of the UK car market in August, up from 23% a year earlier, making BEVs the largest single powertrain category ahead of hybrids at 29%, petrol at 22% and PHEVs at 14%, with plug-ins combined reaching 44%. The performance is comfortably ahead of the effective 24.6% target New AutoMotive calculates for this year, yet the government has opened a consultation on relaxing its EV rules under carmaker pressure — a move that could backfire, given Chinese manufacturers now hold 28% of Europe's PHEV segment, up 60% year on year, with PHEVs making up 60% of BYD's European registrations.
STELLANTIS SETS NOVEMBER JEEP, MID-APRIL RAM PRODUCTION
A supplier memo reviewed by Automotive News schedules electrified Jeep Grand Wagoneer production for November, six months later than the planned May start, and Ram 1500 REV production for mid-April, a nine-month slip from mid-2026 for a pickup originally due in 2025 as the Ramcharger. Stellantis maintains both extended-range models are on track — Jeep this year, Ram in 2027 — with the Grand Wagoneer built in Warren, Michigan alongside its petrol version and the Ram at Sterling Heights, delays that two supplier executives attribute to ensuring smooth launches.
A supplier memo reviewed by Automotive News schedules electrified Jeep Grand Wagoneer production for November, six months later than the planned May start, and Ram 1500 REV production for mid-April, a nine-month slip from mid-2026 for a pickup originally due in 2025 as the Ramcharger. Stellantis maintains both extended-range models are on track — Jeep this year, Ram in 2027 — with the Grand Wagoneer built in Warren, Michigan alongside its petrol version and the Ram at Sterling Heights, delays that two supplier executives attribute to ensuring smooth launches.
PHEVS EMIT 4.6 TIMES OFFICIAL CO₂ VALUES
Plug-in hybrids registered in 2023 emitted 4.6 times their official CO₂ values in real-world driving, up from 3.5 times for 2021 registrations, according to an International Council on Clean Transportation study of nearly 920,000 vehicles that found longer electric range has coincided with less actual electric driving. The ICCT blames the EU utility factor formula, which assumes an 80% electric-driving share against a real-world figure of around 21% in 2022, with author Jan Dornoff arguing the rarely-achieved official values give PHEVs an unjustified advantage over combustion cars in manufacturers' CO₂ compliance.
Plug-in hybrids registered in 2023 emitted 4.6 times their official CO₂ values in real-world driving, up from 3.5 times for 2021 registrations, according to an International Council on Clean Transportation study of nearly 920,000 vehicles that found longer electric range has coincided with less actual electric driving. The ICCT blames the EU utility factor formula, which assumes an 80% electric-driving share against a real-world figure of around 21% in 2022, with author Jan Dornoff arguing the rarely-achieved official values give PHEVs an unjustified advantage over combustion cars in manufacturers' CO₂ compliance.
FORD AIMS FOR 100,000 FATHOM SALES
Ford has set an internal target of 100,000 first-year sales for its Fathom electric truck, according to WSJ sources, a figure no non-Tesla EV model has ever reached in the United States. Production is expected to begin in Q1 2027 with a starting price just under $30,000, which would place the Fathom third among US single models if rivals' volumes hold steady.
Ford has set an internal target of 100,000 first-year sales for its Fathom electric truck, according to WSJ sources, a figure no non-Tesla EV model has ever reached in the United States. Production is expected to begin in Q1 2027 with a starting price just under $30,000, which would place the Fathom third among US single models if rivals' volumes hold steady.
BEVS OUTSELL PETROL AND DIESEL IN AUSTRALIA
Battery-electric vehicles outsold both petrol and diesel in Australia in August, hitting 27,078 units and 24.9% of a new-car market that grew 4.9% to 108,760 vehicles, against 25,824 petrol and 23,608 diesel cars, with BEV sales up 171% year on year. BEVs, hybrids and PHEVs together took 51.8% of sales, leaving combustion-only cars in the minority for the first time, and all eight best-selling EVs were China-built, including Tesla's Shanghai-produced Model Y and Model 3, the BYD Sealion 7 at 2,213 units and sixth overall, and the Geely EX5, up more than 385%.
Battery-electric vehicles outsold both petrol and diesel in Australia in August, hitting 27,078 units and 24.9% of a new-car market that grew 4.9% to 108,760 vehicles, against 25,824 petrol and 23,608 diesel cars, with BEV sales up 171% year on year. BEVs, hybrids and PHEVs together took 51.8% of sales, leaving combustion-only cars in the minority for the first time, and all eight best-selling EVs were China-built, including Tesla's Shanghai-produced Model Y and Model 3, the BYD Sealion 7 at 2,213 units and sixth overall, and the Geely EX5, up more than 385%.
BATTERY TRUCKS PROJECTED TO BEAT DIESEL COSTS
Battery-electric trucks are projected to undercut diesel on total cost of ownership across 70 to 90% of kilometres travelled in German heavy-duty freight by 2030, but that falls to a medium-scenario lower bound of 21 to 25% of economically feasible activities once daily range limits and charging availability are factored in. The Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research study in Nature, combining cost forecasts with real-world use profiles from four million European trucks, finds small-battery electric trucks competitive on 91% of freight activity by 2030 versus 69% for large-battery variants, with drivetrain efficiency, energy costs, battery size and usage intensity driving the outcome.
Battery-electric trucks are projected to undercut diesel on total cost of ownership across 70 to 90% of kilometres travelled in German heavy-duty freight by 2030, but that falls to a medium-scenario lower bound of 21 to 25% of economically feasible activities once daily range limits and charging availability are factored in. The Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research study in Nature, combining cost forecasts with real-world use profiles from four million European trucks, finds small-battery electric trucks competitive on 91% of freight activity by 2030 versus 69% for large-battery variants, with drivetrain efficiency, energy costs, battery size and usage intensity driving the outcome.
MAN PARTNERS PLAN AROUND €400M FOR EUROPEAN SERVICE SITES
MAN dealers, service partners and importers plan to invest around €400m (about $464m) in European service locations, on top of MAN's own €300m (about $348m) network investment by 2030, with board member Friedrich Baumann calling the combined scale unprecedented in company history despite ongoing cost cuts and job reductions. Roughly a third of the partners' spending goes to electromobility and digitalisation, including high-voltage staff training, battery repair centres and public charging at MAN branches, while a separate E.On partnership announced in 2024 targets up to 400 charging points at up to 170 European locations, up to 125 of them in Germany.
MAN dealers, service partners and importers plan to invest around €400m (about $464m) in European service locations, on top of MAN's own €300m (about $348m) network investment by 2030, with board member Friedrich Baumann calling the combined scale unprecedented in company history despite ongoing cost cuts and job reductions. Roughly a third of the partners' spending goes to electromobility and digitalisation, including high-voltage staff training, battery repair centres and public charging at MAN branches, while a separate E.On partnership announced in 2024 targets up to 400 charging points at up to 170 European locations, up to 125 of them in Germany.
WAYVE AND UBER OFFER LONDON AUTONOMOUS RIDES
Wayve and Uber have launched supervised autonomous rides through the Uber app across London's entire urban area excluding airports, using battery-electric Ford Mustang Mach-E vehicles running Wayve's AI Driver with cameras and environmental sensors, each carrying a TfL-licensed safety driver who can intervene. UberX, Uber Electric and Uber Comfort passengers may be offered a Wayve ride at no extra cost before their trip, with London the first of twelve planned markets and a Tokyo service using the Nissan Leaf and Nvidia Drive Hyperion due later this year, though no date has been given for removing the safety driver.
Wayve and Uber have launched supervised autonomous rides through the Uber app across London's entire urban area excluding airports, using battery-electric Ford Mustang Mach-E vehicles running Wayve's AI Driver with cameras and environmental sensors, each carrying a TfL-licensed safety driver who can intervene. UberX, Uber Electric and Uber Comfort passengers may be offered a Wayve ride at no extra cost before their trip, with London the first of twelve planned markets and a Tokyo service using the Nissan Leaf and Nvidia Drive Hyperion due later this year, though no date has been given for removing the safety driver.
BARCELONA OFFERS FOUR MILLION EUROS ELECTRIC BIKE SUBSIDIES
Barcelona is launching four million euros of electric bike subsidies running from 2027 to 2030, with the first call scheduled for publication in 2027, offering up to 400 euros (about $465) for pedal-assisted city bikes and up to 800 euros (about $929) for freight bikes, capped at 40% of the pre-VAT cost. Registered city residents and companies with premises in Barcelona will be eligible, with the scheme intended to extend cycling distances and open up the city's sloped areas, though the subsidy rules still require approval.
Barcelona is launching four million euros of electric bike subsidies running from 2027 to 2030, with the first call scheduled for publication in 2027, offering up to 400 euros (about $465) for pedal-assisted city bikes and up to 800 euros (about $929) for freight bikes, capped at 40% of the pre-VAT cost. Registered city residents and companies with premises in Barcelona will be eligible, with the scheme intended to extend cycling distances and open up the city's sloped areas, though the subsidy rules still require approval.
XIAOMI SIGNS EIGHT GERMAN DEALER ARRANGEMENTS
Xiaomi has signed agreements or letters of intent with eight German dealership groups, including Emil Frey, Penske Automotive and the Lueg Group, ahead of a planned 2027 European launch that will add another Chinese entrant to an already competitive German market. The company, which has sold roughly 700,000 SU7 sedans and YU7 SUVs in China since March 2024 according to President William Lu, is raising its profile at Berlin's IFA show from Sept. 4 to 8 with around 380 products, promoting a "Human x Car x Home" ecosystem linking more than 1,000 devices to the car, though it has not said which models Europe will get.
Xiaomi has signed agreements or letters of intent with eight German dealership groups, including Emil Frey, Penske Automotive and the Lueg Group, ahead of a planned 2027 European launch that will add another Chinese entrant to an already competitive German market. The company, which has sold roughly 700,000 SU7 sedans and YU7 SUVs in China since March 2024 according to President William Lu, is raising its profile at Berlin's IFA show from Sept. 4 to 8 with around 380 products, promoting a "Human x Car x Home" ecosystem linking more than 1,000 devices to the car, though it has not said which models Europe will get.